In a certain territory of Marina City, a meeting between a lord and his ministers was underway.
The topic of discussion was naturally Trainers. Just like the nobles of Aspiration City, they too had sensed the threat posed by the Trainer Association.
Compared to Aspiration City's nobles, the nobles of Marina City held even weaker forces.
The number of Trainers appearing within their territories had already far exceeded the size of their knight orders. With the support of Pokémon Breeding Houses, these Trainers were even stronger than knights.
This led to an extremely peculiar phenomenon—civilian Trainers had now become more knight-like than actual knights, and some knights had even joined the Trainer Association.
The result of all this was the erosion of noble authority. Under the pretext of facilitating Trainer management, the Trainer Association had already stationed itself within various territories, yet the lords could do nothing about it.
In addition to the threat posed by the Trainer Association, the serfs had also become increasingly difficult to control.
Especially since Marina City began promoting the serf advancement system, large numbers of serfs had participated in land reclamation, leading to widespread desertion among the serfs within their territories.
"What exactly is Lord Kale trying to do?" the lord clenched his fist. He simply could not understand Kale's actions—it was as if Kale intended to personally destroy all the lords.
Knock, knock, knock.
Just as the lords angrily criticized Lord Kale, a sudden knock sounded at the door.
The lord frowned. He had given explicit instructions that this meeting was highly confidential and that no one was to disturb it unless something significant occurred.
With a trace of impatience, he summoned an attendant to inquire. Soon, he received news that the local branch of the Trainer Association wished to meet him.
"The President of the Trainer Association? What does he want?" Disgust flashed across the lord's face, but he still instructed the attendant to let him in.
"I wonder what business President Barry has with me," the lord said calmly.
But in the next instant, his expression changed drastically as President Barry replied in the same calm tone, "By order of His Highness Aven, I am here to take over this territory."
"Take over the territory? Do you know what you're saying?" the lord roared in fury. This was a direct provocation!
"I am not joking with you, Lord. Hand over your territorial authority, and you may remain a lord. Otherwise, under His Highness Aven's orders, we will place you under arrest."
Barry's words made the lord laugh in extreme anger as he bellowed, "Knights! Where are my knights?!"
At his shout, the sound of armored footsteps rang out from outside the chamber as large numbers of knights poured into the hall.
But before the lord could order Barry's arrest, the knight commander at the front suddenly spoke, "My lord, please follow His Highness Aven's command and surrender your territorial authority."
The lord could hardly believe his ears. The knight he trusted most had defied his orders. Enraged, he swept all the documents from the table onto the floor.
"My lord, you are no match for His Highness Aven. Even if all the knights in this territory were gathered together, they would not be able to withstand His Highness's knight order."
"For the sake of the people and the territory, please relinquish your authority!"
As he spoke, the knight commander suddenly dropped to one knee. Behind him, the knights followed suit in perfect unison.
Their faces were filled with anxiety. What they did not say aloud was that if the lord insisted on opposing the Trainer Association, they would be facing every Trainer within the territory.
"Please relinquish your territorial authority, my lord! Please relinquish your territorial authority!"
At that moment, loud cries suddenly erupted from outside the castle.
Outside the castle, a massive crowd had gathered—commoners, farmers, merchants, and even knights. What united them all was the Trainer badge worn proudly on their chests.
…
Inside the castle of Marina City, City Lord Kale was continuously receiving reports from all directions.
At first, he paced restlessly back and forth inside the study, unease written all over his face. However, as more and more messages arrived, the anxiety on his expression was gradually replaced by astonishment.
Almost unconsciously, his gaze drifted toward Aven, who stood not far away with a calm and composed expression. Just moments earlier, Kale had received confirmation that many territories had already begun to be taken over by the Trainer Association.
In this power-reclamation operation, he had not dispatched a single knight. Relying solely on the Trainer Association, the task of reclaiming authority had been completed.
What shocked Kale even more was the process by which the Trainer Association seized control. With just a single call to action, all the Trainers across the various territories had responded in unison.
This alone was enough to demonstrate just how immense Aven's prestige was within these territories—especially among the common people.
Ever since Aven's arrival, the lives of all civilians had undergone earth-shaking changes, and Pokémon had gradually become integrated into their daily lives.
The reason they were able to become Trainers in the first place was entirely because of Lord Aven. To them, these Pokémon were no longer mere creatures—they were family.
And if it was for the sake of their family, how could they possibly refuse to fight? In order to create the world envisioned by the Trainer Association, they were willing to pay even the price of their own lives.
As for the serfs, this was even more so the case. They had long yearned for freedom. As long as the old lords could be overthrown, they believed that His Highness Aven would truly grant them that freedom.
Even the knights, who should originally have stood firmly on the side of the lords, hesitated when faced with the Trainer Association. Even if they did not assist, they would not obstruct it either.
After all, once they had joined the Trainer Association, they had already grown accustomed to everything it provided, along with the support of the Pokémon Breeding Houses. Being expelled from the Trainer Association was something they simply could not accept.
Not to mention that this was a battle destined to be lost. Compared to futile resistance, persuading their lords to abandon opposition was clearly the wiser choice—and, at the same time, it was also for the good of their lords.
"It seems that all the news is good news," Aven said calmly, taking a light sip of the flower tea handed to him by Lilligant.
Kale hesitated for a moment before speaking. "Indeed, Lord Aven… was all of this within your expectations?"
"Of course," Aven replied with a smile. "No one is a fool, and no one wants to play the fool by gambling with their own life."
Then, his tone shifted slightly. "Rather than dwelling on this, I think we should discuss our next step."
"From this point onward, the entire Marina City will be fully unified as a single whole, governed by the same set of laws and administered by the same departments. Under such circumstances, coordinated development across the entire city can truly be achieved."
"First and foremost, the popularization of education must become a key focus of Marina City's development. In addition, policies encouraging childbirth are equally important—only with a sufficiently large population can the Pokémon League, this enormous organization, be properly sustained."
Hearing Aven's words, Kale gradually calmed down. He moved to sit at a lower seat beside Aven. On the table before them lay the development blueprint of the Pokémon Domain, which would soon be officially implemented in Marina City.
Half a month later, reforms across all territories of Marina City were basically complete.
The Pokémon League had fully taken over authority across these territories, while the Trainer Association was responsible for managing them.
Naturally, all orders were issued from the Marina City branch of the Pokémon League, which itself was under the direct jurisdiction of the central Pokémon League.
In this way, a centralized system of governance was officially established. The city hall, together with its various departments, began operating like a massive, well-oiled machine.
With the experience accumulated from the Pokémon Domain, coupled with a large number of officials transferred to Marina City, everything progressed smoothly. Orders flowed continuously from central departments down to local administrations.
(End of Chapter)